ONE MORE WEEK

To August that is.  Today is really slow as it is a bank holiday weekend over there and next week will be the Labor day weekend over here.  Of course Those that Count have gotten a head start by showing up in Jackson Hole over the weekend to make sure they have a good seat for Ben's speech I guess.  It is a beautiful spot: if you have never been there you should take a trip, especially our non-U.S. readers; we need the tourist revenue.

On the other side of the country the assemblage is about complete for the Republican convention in Tampa Florida which is being somewhat overshadowed by Hurricane Ike which is now heading straight for New Orleans and giving Democratic politicians visions of sugarplums along with their media allies who plan to turn the clock back this week in the biggest "Blame Bush" orgy in years.  On the whims of the weather are elections decided.

Across the pond, kudos for the touring side from Greece.  The Prime Minister made an excellent impression by all accounts.  Proper contrite tone, grasp of the situation, proud but deferential but unfortunately not having a bean.  From the creditors all the proper murmurs.  Want to help, believe Greece is serious, working as hard as they can, must stick to plan...but not another bean ol' boy, sorry.  We can talk about extensions, tho.

And talk they will whilst conjuring up some fiction of performance to hang on to the poor buggers until the end of the year at least wasting just enough time, effort and frayed psyches to keep from focusing on the bigger problem which faced another interesting twist over the weekend.

Sr. Draghi seems bound and determined to follow through with his plan to target yields for sovereign risk through the controlled purchase of bonds at issuance believing that he can target yields by the amount of bonds the ECB purchases.  As you know, count me as skeptical, but I will say this: unlike Mr. Bernanke and the mobs of economists surrounding him, Sr. Draghi knows markets and therefore, rather than my usual  "that's the stupidest thing I ever heard of" response I shall limit my self to, "I don't think it's going to work." Then again, the beauty of it is who's going to know?  They can fudge this thing at the offerings seven ways to Sunday (Yes, Virginia, those things are done) but  there are these lesser breeds called traders and they tend to take a less than benign view at the angelic efforts of central bankers and bid things at what they believe to be "appropriate levels."  If Sr. Draghi's Spanish 10 year which he believes should yield 5% begins to trade at 91-92, a strategic re-thing may be in order.

Anyway, Angie was saying kind of nice things about this idea and in the background Frankie could be heard mumbling approval when Angie's own Bundesbank head popped up with a rather resounding, "Nein,"  calling the whole thing not only not a good idea but liking it to the printing of counterfeit money!  Ach du Lieber!   One would think that by now everyone is on the same page of the missal but I guess not.  Now maybe this is designed to help the Greeks because while the elephants fight it out in the jungle another day goes by and every day helps a little (not really).  But it sure as hell does no one else any good.

Meanwhile, in Spain, the finance guys have come up with a number of 65 billion Euros to fix the Spanish banks.  Problem is the folks they hired at great expense to tell them how much they needed came up with 85 billion.   Huummmm, I wonder what that means?  And so it goes. Onward to Jackson Hole, gang.  Problem is it's still August and it's still the silly season.  God knows what will come out of that place.

DOG DAYS

It was just top pretty a day yesterday to be inside writing. Besides, I had nothing to write about. Today isn't so hot, but I still have nothing to write about except that the stock market was WAAAAAY up based on, whay I can see, is speculation that Granddad Bernake will announce early Christmas presents to allon Friday in his highly touted speech WAAAAAY out west. Jackson Hole must be like Davos: a bunch of important and self-importnt people preening, walking about and smiling at one another, accomplishing nothing but convinced that the world is a better place for them having been there. They spend an enormous amount of other peoples' money as well. Sorry, but it makes me a bit ill. My bet is that the Street is going to be disappointed because while this is no question that the Chairman wants to do something, down deep he must realize that there is very little he can accomplish other than to keep the stock market happy on what has been an entirely liquidity-driven run. Ok, profits have been good...great in some cases...but a lot of that comes from international operations and currencies because as the Philly Fed numbers showed last week there aint much goin on here. There is of course the problem that if he does not institute or hint at QE III or something like it, the market will tank, so I feel kind of sorry for the poor guy as he finds himself in a bit of a box, albeit one of his own making and that of his predecessors in that we have become used to seeing (or expecting) the Fed to pull rabbits out of a hat to cure our financial woes. 'Tis a consummation devoutly to be wished but not this time I'm afraid. We're at about the last page of the legerdemain volume. Silence still in Euroland even as Frau Merkel and all around her keep telling the world that Germany has done just about all its going to do. August. Gotta be the reason. The ECB keeps buying everything in sight and will continue to do so. Even the banks were quiet today with share prices up generally across the board. I must admit it keeps me up nights. Am I wrong and there's nothing but clear sailing ahead or are we just in the very large eye of a very large storm? I hope I am wrong but I just can't see it. In the meantime it's raining cats and dogs and I have nothing new to write about. I have made a promise to myself not to comment on the Bank of America but I may have to break it over the next few days otherwise it's a shift to advice to the love-lorne. Don't know much about that either. These really are the dog days.